Recognizing
the important role forestry plays in the vitality of its economy, both
Grande Prairie’s municipal government and Chamber of Commerce are lobbying
to gain support for Canada’s position in the softwood lumber dispute. On
the eve of the ninth Northern Alberta Forestry Show being held in this
community located 450 kilometres northwest of Edmonton, both civic and
business leaders recently took time to reflect on the importance of
forestry to the history, growth, and future of Grande Prairie.

“Forestry is one of the pillars of the
Grande Prairie area,” says city mayor Wayne Ayling. “The forest industry
has driven our growth in such a way that Grande Prairie is a hotspot in
western Canada right now.” The chair of the Grande Prairie and District
Chamber of Commerce, Michael Ouellette, echoed that sentiment. “With
forestry, the commitment is long-term,” he says. “When they do their
planning, they are looking 50 to 100 years down the road.” The impact of
that long-term outlook is reflected in the more stable economic spin-offs
in the community.

Three major forest companies have a large
presence in the community—Canfor, Weyerhaeuser, and Ainsworth Lumber—and
they manufacture a variety of forest products including softwood lumber,
pulp and oriented strandboard. There are also a number of independent
primary and secondary forest products manufacturers located in the region.
On the supplier side, Risley Manufacturing, a designer and manufacturer of
logging equipment, is based in Grande Prairie and sells its products to
the world market.

Forestry helps to balance and diversify
Grande Prairie’s economy, says Ayling. “We’re extremely fortunate that
forestry, oil and gas and agriculture are influential in our economy,” he
says. “If one should be a bit soft, the others tend to be in a boom or
upward cycle, meaning that our overall economy tends to grow regardless of
the relative ups and downs of the different industries.” Both leaders
remarked that forest companies have also been extremely sensitive to
community needs and are actively helping to support them.

For example, Ainsworth made the largest
charitable donation in the history of Grande Prairie—a $1.5 million
commitment distributed over 10 years to the Community Foundation of
Greater Grande Prairie. As its name states, the foundation funds community
groups, and in the past five years has distributed $3 million to different
organizations. Ayling adds that Weyerhaeuser and Canfor have also
consistently donated much appreciated time, money and resources in support
of various community groups.

One example of all three companies
working together involves activities on Arbor Day, when students from city
and area schools take field trips to various forest locations. Forest
company employees volunteer their time to educate students about the
importance and proper management of the forest resource. The cost of
busing the students is paid from proceeds gathered at the Northern Alberta
Forest Show. The show itself is a big boost to local business, Ouellette
says, attracting a lot of families to the community who might not
otherwise visit Grande Prairie. “The biggest response we get is that
people are just amazed at how vibrant Grande Prairie is,” he says.

Ayling says the show is also an excellent
opportunity to exchange technical information. “It’s a way for our local
forest industry companies to find out about leading edge technologies,” he
says, “and it gives them a chance to brag about their accomplishments,
which are very substantial in this area.” Given the city’s positive
long-term relationship with the forest industry, both politicians and
business leaders have recently answered the call to come to industry’s aid
in lobbying decision makers —both nationally and internationally—on the
hardship caused by the American tariff on softwood lumber. Although the
tariff has not yet resulted in job losses at the local level, “certainly
it’s a topic of conversation,” says Ayling. For its part, members of city
council have participated in several lobbying initiatives.

The first involved direct lobbying
against the softwood lumber tariff in Washington, DC and more recently
participating in a five-member Canadian delegation on a two-week,
multi-city tour in the US, drumming up support for the Canadian position
against the tariff. “We as a city council have also written to mayors of
major cities in the United States,” says Ayling. “We have also banded
together with other forestry capital cities through the Federation of
Canadian Municipalities to create a lobby effort in the United States.”
Ayling says American civic politicians are supportive of the Canadian
position. While lumber prices are currently low, these local politicians
believe the tariff will ultimately result in higher lumber prices longer
term—making housing less affordable for Americans.

The problem is convincing higher level
American negotiators, who seem to be taking their direction from the
American forest industry lobby. Ouellette says the Grande Prairie Chamber
of Commerce recently sponsored a resolution at the Canadian Chamber of
Commerce annual general meeting urging the federal government to make a
negotiated settlement of the softwood lumber dispute a priority. “We want
it front and centre with the government,” says Ouellette. The resolution
passed unanimously.